Men’s Wear that Finds Beauty in Contrast

From left: the downstairs interior of Linder's Thompson Street boutique; jeans on display in the showroom and workspace upstairs; a coat from the brand's new collaboration with Hus Hus.

By Julie Baumgardner

Dec. 17, 2015

In 2012, the artist Sam Linder stopped into a men’s wear store where the designer Kirk Millar was working. The two struck up a conversation about design, and a friendship was forged; Linder suggested they pair their creative energies and start a company. In 2013, the brand was born, named after Linder. Today, it comprises both an independent men’s wear line and a Thompson Street boutique where Linder and Millar sell their own quiet, relaxed luxury basics and also provide a “flamboyant showcase,” in Linder’s words, for more off-the-wall design.

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Sam Linder (left) and Kirk Millar.

At first, the Linder boutique only carried designers that made clothes Linder and Millar themselves would wear; now, Millar says, “we’re having more fun buying with more imagination involved in it.” The goal of the store, Linder says, is to be a “place of discovery of what’s hard to find” — whether that’s a $4,500 camel cashmere robe by Derek Rose or heritage leathers by Chapal. Regulars pop in every few weeks to see what’s new, knowing they won’t find the same labels at places like Barneys or Dover Street Market. “It’s a place where there’s visual tension,” Millar says of their best-of-both-worlds approach to stocking the store. The business partners’ aesthetics diverge — Millar favors glamour and romanticism, while Linder hews toward the raw and masculine — but they say they find harmony in the contrast. “We always come up with something that I couldn’t have conceived of,” Linder says, “and neither could he.”

In 2014, the duo launched their first men’s wear collection, which entails an ever-evolving interpretation of luxurious leisurewear. Their best sellers so far have included car coats and bomber jackets — but this winter, they’ve also produced a men’s cape and are making a belted sweater, too. (“I never thought I could justify that,” Linder says.) And they’re particularly proud of their upcoming, Italian-made spring/summer sneakers, which are their first unisex items.

The collaborative spirit that drives Linder isn’t limited to the two friends. “We are open to being like, ‘Oh, this person is cool, what if we reach out to them and see if they want to do something with us?’” Millar says. They’ve worked on a jewelry capsule with Bario Neal, and tonight marks the launch of a Linder x Hus Hus clothing collection. It’s dark and avant-garde, a departure for both sets of designers. With Linder’s natural fabrics layered with Hus Hus’s bold, bright shapes and eccentric detailing, the silhouettes veer into feminine territory. “Our clothing was being bought by women,” Millar says. “We always design with menswear in mind, but these days it’s all blurring.” Their open environment is for everyone — well, at least for anyone who identifies, as Linder puts it, as an “urban grown-up with aesthetic values.”